Loxley Park Assisted Living Residency

Updated 24 July 2019

The inspection:

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team:

This inspection was completed by one inspector and one assistant inspector.

Service and service type:

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own apartments within the complex of Loxley Park.

Loxley Park contains adapted single household accommodation on a shared site. The apartments are bought or rented as the occupant’s own home. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) does not regulate the premises. This inspection looked at people’s personal care and support service.

The service had a manager registered with CQC. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection:

We gave the service 24 hours' notice of the inspection as we needed to be sure staff would be available during the office visit and we wanted to arrange visits to people in their own homes.

Inspection activity started and ended on 6 June 2019. We visited the office location to see the registered manager and office staff; and to review care records and policies and procedures. We also visited people in their homes to obtain their feedback about the service.

What we did before the inspection:

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection:

We spoke with five people who used the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. Another relative provided written feedback for us to consider. We spoke with eight members of staff including the registered manager, a team leader, five care assistants and the chef.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records, several medication records and a range of staff files in relation to recruitment, supervision and training. We checked a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures.

After the inspection:

We sought some more information from the registered manager. This was provided in a timely manner and was used to inform our judgements.

Updated 24 July 2019

About the service:

Loxley Park Assisted Living Residency is a domiciliary care service which provides personal care to people living in their own homes within the Loxley Park assisted living complex in Sheffield. The service is known as Loxley Park and is run from an office in the assisted living complex. Care and support is available over a 24-hour period.

People either rented or owned apartments in the Loxley Park complex. There are 75 flats within Loxley Park. At the time of this inspection, the service was providing personal care to 40 people. People had access to shared communal spaces such as lounge areas, a restaurant, a hair salon and garden areas within the grounds.

Not everyone using Loxley Park receives the regulated activity of personal care. CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with 'personal care'; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do receive personal care, we also take into account any wider social care provided.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found:

The service received exceptionally positive compliments, praising staff for being truly caring. Staff knew people extremely well and developed positive bonds and relationships with them. People and their relatives said staff treated them with the utmost dignity and respect. Respect for privacy and dignity was embedded in the service. Without exception, people told us they enjoyed living at Loxley Park.

People received a comprehensive assessment of their care needs prior to using the service. People’s care was personalised and flexible, so each person's support reflected their preferences. People had true ownership of their care plans and were fully involved in making decisions about their care. They told us they felt in control of the care and support they received.

People were encouraged to attend a range of groups and activities. The range of activities on offer was extensive and varied. This supported people to live meaningful, active and fulfilling lives. People were supported and encouraged to remain as independent as possible.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People using the service felt safe. Staff received training to enable them to recognise signs of abuse. They felt confident in reporting any concerns.

The service was well-led by an experienced provider and registered manager. They planned and promoted person-centred, high-quality care. There was a very open and transparent culture at the service and people were empowered to voice their opinions. Without exception, people told us the service was well-managed. Staff morale was positive and they told us they would recommend the service to their loved ones.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection:

The last rating for this service was good (published on 8 December 2016).

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor information we receive about this service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.